Police: Teen shoots teen on west side

Police investigate the scene where a teenage boy was shot in the groin area while at the corner of West Eighth and Cranberry streets, about two blocks east of Strong Vincent High School, on April 8. SAMI RAPPERIE TIMES-NEWS

A west Erie neighborhood crowded with teenagers heading home from school turned chaotic Monday afternoon when a teenage boy brought a gun to a fistfight, police charged.

A 15-year-old boy was shot multiple times by another 15-year-old boy near the intersection of West Eighth and Cranberry streets, Erie police said.

The victim, a sophomore at nearby Strong Vincent High School, was taken to UPMC Hamot after he was struck at least once in the upper leg and possibly in the stomach, police reported.

The boy was conscious and speaking as EmergyCare paramedics took him away on a stretcher shortly after the shooting, which was reported at 3:25 p.m. Monday.

The accused shooter, who was identified by police as a student at Central Career and Technical School, was taken into custody at a residence in the area of West 10th and Cranberry streets about 15 minutes after the shooting. He was questioned by detectives and awaited arraignment Monday night on criminal charges filed in the case.

Erie Police Chief Steve Franklin said the victim and the accused shooter had reportedly agreed to meet in the area on Monday afternoon for a "preplanned" fight. Franklin said he did not know what the fight was over.

There was an altercation before the suspect is believed to have pulled a gun and fired it, Franklin said.

Several Strong Vincent High School students who were in the area when the shooting took place said a group of about 30 teenagers were on the northeast corner of West Eighth and Cranberry streets, apparently ready to fight, when someone started yelling "gun," and they heard five gunshots coming from a group of people to the east of the larger group.

Young people in that group then started running, the students said.

The students said the teen was shot and was bleeding from the leg. He fell to the ground on the front step of a local business.

The intersection where the shooting happened was quickly flooded with Erie police officers and some Erie School District police officers; a number of school district staff members; and more teens, several of whom tried to walk under police crime-scene tape to get closer to the shooting victim.

The crowd dispersed slowly after the youth was taken away by ambulance. Officers who remained at the scene spoke to several possible witnesses and tagged evidence, including shell casings.

Franklin said extra officers were put on the street Monday night to quell any problems that might arise from the shooting. Police also plan to meet with Erie School District officials to find out if the incident is part of a more widespread problem that might need to be addressed, he said.

Police "will keep an eye on" any problems that might arise after school hours, Franklin said.

"Every once in a while we get a call about an after-school disturbance or a fight. But we really haven't had any big problems," he said.

The Erie School District will have additional support for students at Strong Vincent today, including additional counselors. There will also be an increased Erie School District police and Erie police presence in and around the school, said Matthew Cummings, the district's director of communication.

The school will be on "high alert," meaning that all people and bags entering the building will be searched, he said.

Staff writer Erica Erwin contributed to this report.

TIM HAHN can be reached at 870-1731 or by e-mail. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/ETNhahn.